Getting the House Ready for Divali: A Week-by-Week Cleaning Checklist

Divali is on Sunday 8 November this year, and in most Trinidad homes the cleaning starts weeks before: the idea is to welcome Mother Lakshmi into a home that is clean, bright and in order. If you are only starting now, work through the list in order and focus on the rooms your family and guests will use most.

Four weeks out: the jobs that need drying time

Curtains, sheers, cushion covers and bedspreads first. Wash them, dry them in the sun, and put them away pressed and ready to hang the week before. While the curtains are down, wipe the rails, the window frames and the tops of the walls, and wash the louvres blade by blade with a damp cloth wrapped around a ruler. Any painting or touch-ups should happen now, not after the deep clean.

Three weeks out: cupboards, wardrobes and the store room

• Empty each kitchen cupboard, wipe it with warm soapy water, dry it and put back only what you use.
• Clear the wardrobe floors and the top shelves; this is where dust and the occasional mildew hide after the rainy season.
• Sort the store room or the space under the stairs and get rid of what has not been used since last Divali.
• Wash the good glasses, the thalis, serving dishes and the trays that only come out for the season.

Two weeks out: kitchen and bathrooms

The kitchen will run non-stop from the weekend before, so degrease the stove, the wall behind it and the extractor now, and clean the oven while it is still cool and empty. Defrost and wash the freezer before the sweets and the meals for guests fill it. In the bathrooms, scrub the grout and the shower screen, descale the taps and shower head, and wash the extractor grille; put out the good towels on the day itself.

The final week

This is the light pass, top to bottom in each room: ceiling fans and light fittings, then walls and furniture with a damp microfibre cloth, then floors swept and mopped twice. Wash the front door, the gallery, the outside lights and the steps where the deyas will sit. Clean the front windows inside and out so the lights show through on the night. Finally, clear the gallery and the drive of anything that could catch a flame from a deya.

Keeping it that way until the night

Keep a caddy of cleaning supplies by the kitchen for the run of days between the deep clean and Divali, so cooking spills and the traffic of visitors get dealt with as they happen rather than on the morning itself.

If the calendar is already full

Plenty of families book a one-off deep clean and spend the time on the cooking and the family instead. Our deep cleaning page explains what a deep clean covers and how to book. The final week fills quickly, but you can still send a request and let the office confirm what is available.

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